You probably don't remember the last time you checked your mailbox and found something other than bills or junk mail. But lately, something unexpected is happening: people are writing letters again. Real letters. With pens. On paper.

The Unexpected Comeback

Nearly 65% of Americans still send letters and packages monthly, according to a 2024 Stamps.com survey. That alone might not surprise you—people still mail things. But here's the twist: almost 48% of Gen Z mail something one or two times per month. Gen Z. The generation that grew up with smartphones in their hands.

Even more surprising? Millennials buy more greeting cards than any other generation. Americans collectively purchase 6.5 billion greeting cards each year, spending $7-8 billion. That's not a declining industry clinging to life. That's a thriving market.

Pinterest has called it: they're predicting a "letter writing renaissance in 2026." Gen Z and Millennials are turning snail mail into what they call "performance art," with elaborate envelopes and special stationery. The digital natives are going analog.

Why Anyone Still Picks Up a Pen

The reasons people give for writing letters reveal something deeper than nostalgia. When Stamps.com asked, 37% cited "personal touch" as their favorite aspect of sending letters. Another 31% valued the reliability of physical mail over digital communication.

That reliability matters more than you might think. In an era of online scams, data breaches, and hacked accounts, a physical letter feels secure. It's private. As generational expert Bryan Driscoll puts it, letter writing offers "one of the last private, unmonetized spaces left."

For Gen Z especially, this matters. Driscoll describes their embrace of snail mail as "a subtle act of rebellion against their digital upbringing" and constant data exploitation. Every app they use tracks them. Every platform sells their information. A letter? That's just between two people.

Margaret Haas, the 33-year-old owner of Paper Pastries stationery store, sees another dimension. "Handwriting forces people to slow down and think more deeply," she says. When you write by hand, you can't dash off whatever pops into your head. You have to consider each word. You have to mean it.

There's also the collectability factor. You probably have letters from years ago tucked in a drawer somewhere. But do you have text messages from 10 years ago? Digital communications disappear. Letters stay.

What Happens in Your Brain

The appeal of handwritten letters isn't just emotional or cultural. Something different happens in your brain when you write by hand.

Writing by hand activates both hemispheres of your brain. It engages cognitive and motor skills simultaneously, improving focus and concentration. Research from Japan, Norway, and the United States consistently shows people remember things better when written by hand compared to typing.

National Geographic reported in October 2024 that handwriting activates multiple brain regions, improving memory retention and cognitive function in ways digital tools simply cannot replicate. When you type, you're just pressing keys. When you write, you're creating shapes, controlling pressure, coordinating complex movements.

A 2015 study in the Journal of Business and Psychology found that recipients of handwritten thank-you notes felt more emotionally connected than those receiving similar messages via email. The difference wasn't just in the content—it was in the medium itself.

A University of California study showed that writing gratitude letters increases happiness and can even reduce physical ailments. Handwriting has what researchers call a therapeutic effect—"scribal therapy"—that enhances mental health and reduces anxiety and depression symptoms.

Pen pal club members describe their letter writing as therapeutic, helping them work through personal issues. More than two dozen pen pal clubs exist nationwide, with membership spanning all age groups. The LA Pen Pal Club, founded in 2015 at Paper Pastries, represents a growing movement of letter-writing enthusiasts who meet monthly.

The Skills We're Losing

Here's the uncomfortable reality: while some people are rediscovering handwritten letters, many are losing the ability to write them well.

A 2021 OnePoll study found that 45% of Americans struggle to read their own handwriting. Seventy percent have trouble reading notes or letters from others. Experts warn that 40% of Gen Z is losing handwriting skills altogether, and it's "rewiring their brains."

Some schools worldwide have stopped teaching cursive entirely. The generation embracing handwritten letters as rebellion might struggle to actually write them legibly.

This creates a strange paradox. As handwriting becomes rarer, it becomes more valuable—both as a skill and as a gesture. A poorly typed email is forgettable. A handwritten letter, even with imperfect penmanship, shows effort.

The Business of Letters

The stationery industry is responding to this revival in interesting ways. New stationery companies are being started by entrepreneurs in their 20s and 30s, often women, according to Aaron Hazard, director of sales at the National Stationery Show.

Millennials are experimenting beyond traditional paper, creating greeting cards made of wood or metal. The 140-year-old greeting card industry, which had its heyday in the 1980s, maintains steady sales despite predictions of decline.

Nick Spitzman, General Manager of Stamps.com, explains the staying power: "Mail is still incredibly relevant today because of the unique value it provides—the personal touch, the reliability, the importance."

Forty percent of Baby Boomers prioritize tracking capabilities when sending mail, citing concerns about digital security. Every generation has found its own reason to value physical correspondence.

What This Means

The renaissance of handwritten letters isn't about rejecting technology. Most people writing letters also send hundreds of texts and emails. It's about reclaiming something technology can't provide.

In a world where everything moves fast, letters move slow. In a world where every interaction is monetized, letters are private. In a world where digital communications vanish, letters remain.

A University of Pennsylvania study found that increased social media use was associated with decreased social skills and empathy. Maybe handwritten letters are one small way to push back against that trend. When you write a letter, you think about another person for more than the few seconds it takes to fire off a text.

The irony is rich: the most digitally connected generations are the ones reaching for pens and paper. They're not abandoning their phones. They're just recognizing what their phones can't do.

The letter you write today might sit in someone's drawer for decades. They might reread it when they need comfort or want to remember. Try doing that with an email.